Cold worked metal housing for a portable electronic device

ABSTRACT

A cold worked stainless steel bezel for a portable electronic device is provided. The bezel is secured flush to a housing to form part of the case of the portable electronic device. A brace that includes a slot for receiving a wall extending from the bezel is fixed to the housing. When the bezel engages the housing, the wall of the bezel is inserted in the slot of the brace and releasably held by a spring that engages both the brace and the wall. The bezel can be released by disengaging the spring, (e.g., using a special tool or a magnetic field). Because the bezel is manufactured from cold worked stainless steel, it is hard and resistant to impacts. Cold worked steel also facilitates manufacturing within design constraints and tolerances, and requires very little machining after manufacturing to comply with those constraints.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION(S)

This application is a continuation patent application of U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 16/820,484, filed Mar. 16, 2020 and titled “ColdWorked Metal Housing for a Portable Electronic Device,” which is acontinuation patent application of U.S. patent application Ser. No.16/440,896, filed Jun. 13, 2019 and titled “Cold Worked Metal Housingfor a Portable Electronic Device,” now U.S. Pat. No. 10,609,832, whichis a continuation patent application of U.S. patent application Ser. No.15/817,063, filed Nov. 17, 2017 and titled “Cold Worked Metal Housingfor a Portable Electronic Device,” now U.S. Pat. No. 10,420,231, whichis a continuation patent application of U.S. patent application Ser. No.14/313,505, filed Jun. 24, 2014 and titled “Cold Worked Metal Housingfor a Portable Electronic Device,” now U.S. Pat. No. 9,955,599, which isa continuation patent application of U.S. patent application Ser. No.13/561,853, filed Jul. 30, 2012 and titled “Cold Worked Metal Housingfor a Portable Electronic Device,” now U.S. Pat. No. 8,760,866, which isa continuation patent application of U.S. patent application Ser. No.12/706,444, filed Feb. 16, 2010 and titled “Cold Worked Metal Housingfor a Portable Electronic Device,” now U.S. Pat. No. 8,243,429, which isa divisional patent application of U.S. patent application Ser. No.11/650,068, filed Jan. 5, 2007 and titled “Cold Worked Metal Housing fora Portable Electronic Device,” now U.S. Pat. No. 7,688,574, thedisclosures of which are hereby incorporated herein by reference intheir entireties.

BACKGROUND

This invention is directed to a cold worked stainless steel bezel for aportable electronic device.

By their very nature, portable electronic devices (e.g., MP3 players,cellular telephones) are carried around and subject to impacts andinadvertent blows to which static electronic devices (e.g., desk-topcomputers, televisions) are not subject. To protect the electronicsystems of these portable devices, manufacturers have constructed impactresistant cases.

Existing cases, however, are not always easily manufactured,aesthetically pleasing, or sufficiently resistant to impacts.Accordingly, there is a need for a hard, easily manufactured andaesthetically pleasing case for portable electronic devices.

SUMMARY

A bezel for a portable electronic device case is provided.

The bezel is configured to be releasably engaged with a housing to formthe case. The bezel includes an attachment portion that extends from theouter surface of the bezel such that the attachment portion is receivedin a brace fastened to the housing. The brace includes a slot configuredto simultaneously receive the attachment portion and a spring. Thespring is configured to engage both a lip of the brace and an engagementmember of the attachment portion. The brace is secured to the housingwhen both the brace and the attachment portion engage the spring. Whenthe case is assembled, the bezel and the housing are flush.

The bezel may be constructed from cold worked stainless steel. By coldworking the steel during or prior to manufacturing of the bezel, thesteel undergoes a martensitic transformation that increases the hardnessof the bezel, which may provide the bezel with desired impact andscratch resistant properties. A cold working manufacturing process alsoallows the bezel to be manufactured with greater precision than othermanufacturing processes. This limits the post-manufacturing machiningrequired to ensure that the bezel satisfies design tolerances (e.g., theattachment portion fits snugly in the slot of the brace, and the outersurface of the bezel is flush with the housing) and reduces costs. Thebezel may also be polished to provide an aesthetically pleasing finish.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The above and other features of the present invention, its nature andvarious advantages will be more apparent upon consideration of thefollowing detailed description, taken in conjunction with theaccompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is an exploded view of a portable electronic device in accordancewith an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the assembled portable electronic devicecase of FIG. 1 in accordance with an embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 3 is a wire frame perspective view of the bottom of the assembledportable electronic device case of FIG. 2 in accordance with anembodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is an end view of a brace and spring of the portable electronicdevice case of FIG. 1 in accordance with an embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a spring of the portable electronicdevice case of FIG. 1 in accordance with an embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view of the assembled portable electronicdevice case of FIG. 2 in accordance with an embodiment of the presentinvention; and

FIG. 7 is a flow chart of an illustrative process for assembling a bezelwith a housing to form the case of a portable electronic device inaccordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

In accordance with the present invention, a cold worked steel bezel fora portable electronic device is provided.

FIG. 1 is an exploded view of the elements of an illustrative portableelectronic device case in accordance with an embodiment of theinvention. FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the assembled portableelectronic device case of FIG. 1 in accordance with an embodiment of thepresent invention. Case 100 includes bottom housing 110, brace 210,bezel 310, and spring 410. Bottom housing 110 includes substantiallylevel plate 112 that curves away from level plate 112 to form side walls114. Inner surface 113 of plate 112 (i.e., the surface of plate 112 thatfaces the electronics of the portable electronic device) can includetopographical features for receiving or supporting particularelectronics elements (e.g., indentations, perforations, ridges andslots).

Bottom housing 110 can be in any suitable shape. For example, bottomhousing 110 can be substantially rectangular, square, elliptical,circular, irregular, or any other suitable shape. In the example of FIG.1, bottom housing 110 is substantially rectangular. Bottom housing 110can include left side 120, right side 122, bottom 124 (not shown) andtop 126. The corners of bottom housing 110 where adjacent sides meet(e.g., right side 122 and top 126) may be rounded to provide a housinghaving a comfortable feel (e.g., no hard angles).

FIG. 3 is a wire frame perspective view from the bottom of the assembledportable electronic device case of FIG. 2 in accordance with anembodiment of the invention. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, brace 210 can befastened to bottom housing 110 to provide a support for coupling bottomhousing 110 and bezel 310. Brace 210 can be fastened to bottom housing110 in any suitable manner including, for example, an adhesive. In thisexample, inner surface 115 of side walls 114 may be substantially smoothto provide a suitable surface for gluing brace 210 to side walls 114. Asanother example, brace 210 and side walls 114 of bottom housing 110 mayinclude complimenting structures (e.g., a tab extending from brace 210and corresponding notch in bottom housing 110) for fastening brace 210to bottom housing 110. As still another example, brace 210 may befastened to bottom housing 110 using a fastener (e.g., a screw, bolt andnut, or a clip). In other embodiments, any other suitable manner orcombinations of manners for fastening brace 210 to bottom housing 110may be used.

Brace 210 may be fastened to any portion of bottom housing 110. Forexample, case 100 may include two braces 210 that are fastened to leftside 120 and right side 122 of bottom housing 110. As another example,braces 210 may be fastened instead or in addition to bottom 124 (notshown), top 126, or one or more corners of bottom housing 110. Case 100may include several designs for brace 210, each design configured to befastened to a different portion of bottom housing 110 (e.g., left side120 or right side 122). In some embodiments, brace 210 may be designedto be fastened to two or more sides of bottom housing 110 (e.g., brace210 configured to be fastened to top 126, the top portion of left side120, and the top portion of right side 122).

Brace 210 can include any suitable structure for fastening to bottomhousing 110 or for engaging bezel 310. FIG. 4 is an end view of a braceand spring of the portable electronic device case of FIG. 1 inaccordance with an embodiment of the invention. As shown in FIG. 4,brace 210 includes smooth lower portion 212 and irregular upper portion220. Lower portion 212 may be a curved surface whose curvature matchesthat of side walls 114. The matching curvature may allow lower portion212 to be fixed tightly to the inner surface of side walls 114 (e.g.,using an adhesive). Brace 210 also includes upper lip 238 that extendsfrom the periphery of brace 210 and is configured to be received bynotches 116 in side wall 114.

Upper portion 220 may include several elements for engaging bottomhousing 110 and bezel 310. In the example of FIG. 1, upper portion 220includes interior wall 221 and exterior wall 230 (with respect to thecenter of the portable electronic device) that define U-shaped slot 225.Interior wall 221 may be a continuous or discontinuous wall thatincludes apertures 222 and cutouts 224 (shown in FIG. 3). Cutouts 224may be aligned with apertures 334 of bezel 310 (and with apertures 414of spring 410) such that case 100 to align brace 210 and bezel 310 whencase 100 is assembled. In some embodiments, cutouts 224 and apertures334 (and apertures 414 of spring 410) may be configured to receivefasteners (e.g., screws) to secure case 100. The surfaces of walls 221and 230 that define slot 225 may be substantially smooth so as toreceive bezel 310 tightly in slot 225.

Exterior wall 230 may be a discontinuous wall that is slightly recessedfrom outermost edge 214 of lower portion 212 (shown in FIG. 1). Exteriorwall 230 may include several wall elements 232 that are separated byfree space 234. Each wall element 232 includes lower lip 236 and upperlip 238 (with respect to lower portion 212) that extend out from eachwall element 232 towards bottom housing 110 and away from theelectronics contained within case 100. Lower and upper lips 236 and 238may be configured to extend into notch 116 of side wall 114. Lower andupper lips 236 and 238 define recessed portion 240 of wall elements 232.

As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, brace 210 may include ribs 242 extendingparallel to wall elements 232 from edge 214 in free space 234. Ribs 242may define a U-shaped enclosure for receiving and/or capturing spring410.

Spring 410 may be used to releasably couple brace 210 to bezel 310. FIG.5 is a perspective view of a spring of the portable electronic devicecase of FIG. 1 in accordance with an embodiment of the invention. Asshown in FIGS. 1 and 5, spring 410 may include elongated strip 412 thatfeatures apertures 414 at intervals calculated to coincide with featuresof bezel 310 (described below in more detail in connection with FIG. 6).Spring 410 includes several U-shaped cantilevers 420 that aredistributed along strip 412.

Spring 410 may be configured to be received in brace 210. In particular,elongated strip 412 may be received in recessed portion 240 such that aportion of strip 412 is captured in ribs 242. The distance between lowerand upper lips 236 and 238 (i.e., the height of recessed portion 240)and the width of strip 412 may be selected such that strip 412 may fitsecurely between lips 236 and 238 (e.g., in a press fit relation), andribs 242 may further be designed secure and maintain strip 412 inrecessed portion 240 (e.g., with a notch for securing strip 412). Spring410 may further be secured in brace 210 by the proximity of side wall114 of bottom housing 110, which borders spring 410 on the side that isnot adjacent to brace 210.

Cantilevers 420 may be distributed along spring 410 such thatcantilevers 420 fit within free space 234 of brace 210. As shown in FIG.4, which is an end view of brace 210 and spring 410, cantilevers 420 areattached to lower edge 422 of strip 412, and bent toward upper edge 423of strip 412 such that a front or rear view of spring 410 shows aU-shape. Tip 424 of cantilever 420 is a free tip that may be configuredto bend elastically in response to an external force on cantilever 420(e.g., as a cantilever spring). For example, cantilever 420 may bendwhen bezel 310 is pressed into bottom housing 110 and brace 210. Eachcantilever 420 may include an aperture 426.

When spring 410 is placed in brace 210, cantilevers 420 extend fromexterior wall 230 towards interior wall 221 such that cantilever 420takes the place of wall elements 232 in free space 234 (FIG. 1).Apertures 426 may be configured to receive tabs or protrusions of bezel310 (e.g., engaging member 336) such that bezel 310 engages spring 410.

Bezel 310 may be configured to be placed over bottom housing 110 toassemble case 100. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 6 (described in more detailbelow), bezel 310 may include base structure 312 that provides the outerupper surface of case 100. Inner surface 320 of structure 312, shown inFIG. 6, includes steps 322 and 324 for supporting electronic or othercomponents of the portable electronic device. For example, step 322 maybe configured to support screen 350 and step 324 may be configured tosupport reflective layer 352. Inner surface 320 may include any othersuitable feature for supporting one or more components of the portableelectronic device (e.g., an input component such as a scroll wheel).

Lower surface 326 of base structure 312 is substantially level andconfigured to be placed against the top surface 115 of wall 114 whenbezel 310 is engaged with bottom housing 110. Both lower surface 326 andtop surface 115 may be designed to remain in close contact when case 100is assembled. For example, lower surface 326 and top surface 115 mayinclude complimentary features configured to unite and provide a tightfit. Bezel 310 may be constructed using methods and materials that allowfor very tight tolerances in all directions (e.g., x, y and zdirections), which may ensure that bezel 310 is flush with bottomhousing 110 when case 100 is assembled.

Outer surface 314 of base structure 312 may be a curved structureconfigured to be flush with side walls 114 when bezel 310 engages bottomhousing 110. Outer surface 314 may be polished to provide anaesthetically pleasing finish to bezel 310. Outer surface 314 may bepolished in any suitable manner including, for example, with an abrasivedisk having 120 or 240 grit silicone carbide, a grinding disk or clothhaving 3 or 9 μm diamond suspension, or a cloth having 0.05 μm colloidalsilica or alumina suspensions.

Attachment portion 330 extends from base structure 312 towards bottomhousing 110 and brace 210. Attachment portion 330 includes wall 332 thatextends beyond lower surface 326. In some embodiments, wall 332 is notcontinuous, but includes discrete segments distributed around theperiphery of bezel 310. To provide a strong connection between bezel 310and brace 210, wall 332 may be continuous in the sections of attachmentportion 330 that are configured to be placed in slot 225 of brace 210.Attachment portion 330 may include a plurality of apertures 334 that arealigned with apertures 414 of spring 410 and cutouts 224 when case 100is assembled to assist in aligning brace 210, bezel 310 and spring 410.In some embodiments, apertures 334, 414 and cutouts 224 may beconfigured to receive a fastener (e.g. a screw) for securing bezel 310to bottom housing 110.

The sections of wall 332 that are configured to be placed in slot 225may include one or more engaging members 336. Engaging members 336 maybe tabs or other such elements that extend from wall 332 toward theexterior of the portable electronic device. Each engaging members 336may include angled tip 338 and level tab 340 for engaging at least oneof apertures 426 and 414 of cantilever 420.

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view of the assembled portable electronicdevice case of FIG. 2 in accordance with an embodiment of the presentinvention. To engage bezel 310 with brace 210, spring 410 is firstplaced and captured in brace 210. Bezel 310 may then be pressed intobrace 210 such that wall 332 extends into slot 225. When bezel 310 ispressed into bottom housing 110, wall 332 is inserted in slot 225 andengaging members 336 press cantilevers 420 into free space 234 to createenough room to fully occupy slot 225. Angled tip 338 may be configuredto progressively apply a force on cantilever 420 to progressivelydeflect cantilever 420 as bezel 310 is pushed into housing 110. Oncewall 332 has been fully inserted in slot 225, aperture 426 is alignedwith tab 340 (e.g., by designing the placement of aperture 426appropriately). Tab 340 then extends into aperture 426 and ceases toapply a force on cantilever 420, which springs back to its equilibriumposition in free space 224. Tab 340 then engages aperture 426 andprevents wall 332, and thus bezel 310, from disengaging brace 210 unlesstab 340 is released from spring 410.

To disengage bezel 310 from brace 210 and bottom housing 110, anexternal force may be applied to spring 410 that forces cantilevers 420to bend away from wall 332 such that engaging members 336 are releasedfrom apertures 426. Once engaging members 336 are released, bezel 310may be removed from slot 225. The external force may be applied tospring 410 in any suitable manner. For example, a tool may be configuredto be inserted in case 100 to engage cantilever 420. As another example,if cantilever 420 is made from a material that is subject to a magneticforce in the presence of a magnetic field, a magnetic field (e.g.,provided by a magnet) may provide an external force for disengagingengaging members 336. Suitable materials that are operative to move inthe presence of a magnetic field include ferrite materials such as, forexample, cold worked 304 stainless steel or 404 stainless steel.

The elements of case 100 may be manufactured using any suitablemanufacturing process and using any suitable material. For example,bottom housing 110 may be formed using one or more of casting, molding(e.g., power metallurgy molding), forging, machining, rolling,extrusion, milling, or any other suitable manufacturing process. Bottomhousing 110 may also be finished using any suitable manufacturingprocess including, for example, polishing, buffing, burnishing, grit,shot or sand blasting, tumbling, wire brushing, flame blasting,electropolishing, or any other suitable process for finishing bottomhousing 110 (e.g., to provide an aesthetically pleasing appearance).Bottom housing 110 may be constructed from any suitable material suchas, for example, aluminum, steel, iron alloys, titanium, magnesium,copper alloys, other metallic alloys, plastics, polymers, ceramics orcomposites. In one embodiment, bottom housing 110 may be constructedfrom aluminum.

Brace 210 and spring 410 may be constructed using one or more of themanufacturing processes listed above in connection with forming bottomhousing 110. In addition, brace 210 and spring 410 may be constructedusing one or more of the materials listed above in connection withbottom housing 110. In one embodiment, brace 210 may be made from amagnesium and spring 410 may be made from stainless steel (e.g., 404series stainless steel).

Bezel 310 may also be constructed using one or more of the manufacturingprocesses and one or more of the materials listed above in connectionwith forming bottom housing 110. In one embodiment, bezel 310 may beconstructed using stainless steel such as, for example, 304 stainlesssteel. 304 stainless steel may be hardened by cold work, and enablebezel 310 to withstand heavy loads and impacts (e.g., caused by droppingthe portable electronic device).

304 stainless steel is an austenitic steel, which is a non-magneticsolid solution of iron and carbon. The iron and carbon molecules arearranged in a face-centered cubic (FCC) lattice structure that containsa high proportion of carbon as compared to ferrite, which has abody-centered cubic lattice structure. The higher density of carbonatoms in austenitic steel exhibits a more durable and harder materialthan ferrite. Austenitic steels may contain a maximum of 0.15% carbon, aminimum of 16% chromium and sufficient nickel and/or manganese to retainan austenitic structure (i.e., FCC lattice structure) at alltemperatures from the cryogenic region to the melting point of thealloy. Without the addition of sufficient nickel and/or manganese, theFCC lattice structure is unstable and may revert to a BCC latticestructure (i.e., revert from austenitic steel to ferrite). 304 stainlesssteel has a composition of 18% chromium and 8% nickel, commonly known as18/8 stainless steel, and is one of the most common grades of stainlesssteel.

Some metals may be strengthened by heat treatment, which is typicallyused to manipulate the properties of a metal by controlling the rate ofdiffusion of particles in the metal, and the rate of cooling within themicrostructure. Austenitic steels such as 304 stainless, however, cannotbe strengthened by heat treatment alone. Instead, two other methods maybe used: plastic deformation of the steel, and refining the grain sizeof the steel.

Plastic deformation of a material is an irreversible deformation of thematerial. In the particular case of austenitic steel, a plasticdeformation causes an irreversible modification of the crystal structureof the steel. The modification creates irregularities in the latticestructure of the crystals, which are called dislocations (e.g., edge andscrew dislocations). As more dislocations are introduced in the materialby further plastic deformation (e.g., by the formation of newdislocations and dislocation multiplication), the strain fields ofadjacent dislocations overlap and gradually increase the material'sresistance to additional dislocation. This causes the material to becomeharder. This effect is known as strain hardening or work hardening.

One process for hardening the material by plastic deformation is coldwork, which is the process by which material is hardened as a result ofplastic deformation of the material at low to moderate temperatures.Cold work may be provided by any suitable process that is performed atlow temperatures such as, for example, extrusion, drawing or coining.

Plastic deformation of an austenitic steel, such as 304 stainless steel,may induce martensitic transformation. The martensitic transformation isthe transformation of austenite in the austenitic steel to martensite.Austenite and martensite have an identical chemical composition, andvery similar crystal structures, where the cubic structure of austeniteis distorted by interstitial atoms of carbon that do not have time todiffuse out during the process causing transformation (e.g., plasticdeformation or quenching) form martensite. Martensite is thussupersaturated with carbon. The carbon atoms cause the martensitecrystal structure to stretch, which stretches the crystal lattice of themetal and creates additional strain, therefore creating additionalstrain fields that combine with those of the dislocations caused by theplastic deformation to harden the material.

For plastic deformation to be effective to form martensite, it mustoccur below the martensitic deformation temperature of the material.Because the martensitic deformation temperature (M_(d)) is dependent onchemistry and initial grain size, it is difficult to determine, and anapproximation is used instead. One suitable approximation is M_(d30),which varies similarly to M_(d). M_(d30) is the temperature at which 50%of the microstructure would transform to martensite given a 30% truestrain.

The grains in an austenitic steel may be refined by annealing the steelafter cold work. Annealing the metal causes the crystals in the materialto recrystallize and nucleate and grow larger grains. Dislocations inthe crystal lattice caused by cold work disappear as new grains areformed. There is a point, however, where a material may be cold workedat a level where there are too many dislocations for recrystallizationusing annealing to be practical.

The annealed material may be cooled in any suitable manner including,for example, cooled in the furnace (i.e., full anneal heat treatment),in air (i.e., normalizing heat treatment), or quenched (e.g., quicklycooled). The metal may be quenched, for example, with forced air or gas(e.g., nitrogen), in oil, polymer dissolved in water, water, or brine.Quenching may cause the introduction of martensite in the austeniticsteel, which is harder than austenite. The steel must be rapidly cooledthrough its eutectoid point, the temperature at which austenite becomesunstable, for martensite to be introduced.

The resulting grain size and distribution in the material may depend onthe amount of cold work prior to annealing (e.g., the number ofdislocations in the steel prior to heat treatment), the annealingtemperature, the duration the metal is left in the furnace, and thecooling temperature. For example, the longer the steel is left in thefurnace, and the higher the furnace temperature, the more new grains arenucleated and the more dislocations are eliminated (e.g., leading to amore ductile steel). As another example, if the steel is rapidly cooledthrough its eutectoid point, martensite may be introduced (e.g.,hardening the steel).

304 stainless steel may be polished to provide an aesthetically pleasingsurface (e.g., aesthetically pleasing outer surface 314 of basestructure 312). The steel may be polished using a sequence of polishingsteps at different grits (e.g., higher grits as the sequenceprogresses).

Bezel 310 (and spring 410) may be manufactured from 304 stainless steelusing a cold worked process which, as discussed above, provides highstrength. But cold working also provides for very precise constraints inall directions (e.g., x, y and z directions) without additionalmanufacturing processes. This combination of properties may make coldworking a preferable process for manufacturing bezel 310. For example,cold working may be substantially cheaper than machining, which includesa cost for the skilled machining labor. As another example, a coldworked metal component may be stronger than a die cast metal component,as it is difficult to cast stainless steel (e.g., alloys tend to pullaway from the steel, leaving a weaker structure). In addition, diecasting may be imprecise, and require post-casting machining to resizecomponents within the design tolerances.

For bezel 310 to be perfectly flush with bottom housing 110, bezel 310,spring 410 and housing 110 may be manufactured with tight tolerances. Inparticular, wall 332 and tab 340 may be manufactured precisely so thatwall 332 fits flush in slot 225 and tab 340 engages at least one ofapertures 426 and 414. Also, lower surface 326 of base structure 312 ofbezel 310 and surface 115 of wall 114 of bottom housing 110 may bemanufactured precisely so that lower surface 226 and surface 115 areflush, and outer surface 314 of bezel 310 is flush with the outersurface of wall 114. Manufacturing at least bezel 310 (and bottomhousing 110, brace 210 and spring 410) using a cold work processprovides a near perfect net component that only requires minimalmachining or touching up to satisfy the tight tolerance requirements ofthe component.

The following flow chart will serve to illustrate a process involved insome embodiments of this invention. FIG. 7 is a flow chart of anillustrative process for assembling a bezel with a housing to form thecase of a portable electronic device in accordance with an embodiment ofthe present invention. Process 700 begins at step 702. At step 704, abrace is affixed to the inner surface of the housing of the case. Thebrace may be affixed using any suitable approach including, for example,an adhesive or a fastener. The brace may include a rib for securing aspring, and a slot for receiving the bezel. At step 706, a spring isinserted and secured in the brace. The spring may be configured to fitin a rib of the brace such that the spring remains positioned within therib. In some embodiments, the order of steps 704 and 706 may bereversed.

At step 708, the bezel is placed over the brace, and the walls of theattachment portion of the bezel are aligned over the slot of the brace.At step 710, the bezel is pressed into the brace such that the wall isinserted in the slot of the brace, and such that at least one engagingmember of the bezel engages an aperture in the spring. The case isassembled once the spring simultaneously engages the brace and thebezel. Process 700 then ends at step 712.

In another embodiment, the assembly process may be performed as follows.The spring may be assembled to the brace. The spring/brace combinationis assembled to bezel, which may cause the spring to be captured betweenthe bezel and the brace.

The above described embodiments of the present invention are presentedfor purposes of illustration and not of limitation, and the presentinvention is limited only by the claims which follow.

What is claimed is:
 1. A case for a portable electronic device,comprising: a bottom housing; a brace configured to be coupled to thebottom housing, the brace comprising a slot; a bezel comprising anattachment portion configured to extend into the slot; and a springconfigured to be placed in the slot with the attachment portion andconfigured to simultaneously engage the brace and the bezel.
 2. The caseof claim 1, wherein the attachment portion comprises at least oneengaging member configured to releasably engage the spring.
 3. The caseof claim 1, wherein the brace comprises at least one lip to releasablyengage the spring.
 4. The case of claim 1, wherein the brace, spring andbezel comprise apertures configured to align to receive a fastener tosecure the bezel to the brace.
 5. The case of claim 1, wherein the bezelmay be disengaged from the brace by disengaging the spring from theengagement member.
 6. The case of claim 5, wherein the spring maydisengage the engagement member by applying a magnetic force to thespring.
 7. The case of claim 1, wherein the bottom housing and brace areconfigured to be flush.
 8. The case of claim 1, wherein the bezel isconstructed from cold worked stainless steel.
 9. The case of claim 1,wherein the housing is for at least one of a personal media device and amobile telephone.
 10. A housing of a case of a portable electronicdevice, comprising: a level plate; and side walls extending from thelevel plate, wherein: the inner surface of the side walls is configuredto receive a brace, the brace comprising a slot configured to releasablyreceive a spring; and the housing is configured to receive a bezelcomprising an attachment portion configured to releasably engage thespring placed in the slot.
 11. The housing of claim 10, wherein the sidewalls and the outer surface of the bezel are flush when the bezel isreleasably engaged in the brace.
 12. The housing of claim 10, whereinthe brace is configured to be fixedly fastened to the inner surface ofthe side walls using an adhesive.
 13. The housing of claim 10, whereinthe attachment portion of the bezel comprises at least one engagingmember for engaging the spring.
 14. The housing of claim 10, wherein thebezel is constructed from stainless steel.
 15. The housing of claim 10,wherein the housing is constructed from aluminum.
 16. The housing ofclaim 10, wherein the housing is for at least one of a personal mediadevice and a mobile telephone.
 17. A bezel configured to engage ahousing to form the case of a portable electronic device, the bezelcomprising: a base structure comprising a substantially smooth outersurface; and an attachment portion extending from the base structure,the attachment portion comprising: a plurality of walls configured toextend into the housing, the plurality of walls comprising at least oneengaging member configured to engage the housing; and at least oneaperture, wherein the at least one aperture is configured to align withat least one aperture in the housing for receiving a fastener.
 18. Thebezel of claim 17, wherein the inner surface of base structure comprisesat least one feature for supporting one or more components of theportable electronic device.
 19. The bezel of claim 17, wherein the outersurface of the bezel is configured to be flush with the housing.
 20. Thebezel of claim 17, wherein the housing comprises a brace configured toreceive the plurality of walls in a slot.